Potato Croquetas with Saffron Alioli Reviews

In the past two years, half of our food editors have traveled to Spain, where they tried a variety of croquetas (ham, fish, and vegetable) that left a very positive impression. Serve these potato croquetas with any combination of dried sausage, olives, nuts, and cheese.

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Reviews

users rating4/4

These were good, not great. I did add some sweet paprika to give it a little more oomph. Either way, I consider the fact that four kids gobbled them up in the space of 5 minutes a good thing. Definitely use Panko breadcrumbs; nice crunch to the fluffiness of the potatoes.

Made these with the saffron aioli as suggested. I couldn't find tarragon, so I just added a little extra chive along with about 1/4 cup grated parmesan. The result was delicious! (The croquetas are just ok by themselves but amazing with the aioli!)

Just about any fried potato bite can be addictively tasty, but these herby poufs are elegant & sublime. Two items you must have for this recipe are the ricer (no amount of smashing, beating, blending or assaulting can produce its fluffy results) and tarragon (dried is fine!). A smoked paprika alioli is nice too.

These came out well, but were not outstanding. They were a bit of a pain to make. If I did it again, I would add a little cheese to the inner potato filling so that it would melt and make the inside more interesting. Even some parmesan on the inside would be good. The aioli really helped. I would also be sure when frying to get them brown before taking them out so you have a good crisp outside to contrast with the inside. Given the amount of effort, I would consider another appetizer.

Panko bread crumbs
are highly
suggested, and fresh
tarragon is key. A
potato ricer isn't a
necessity, but the
texture is worth it.
A "hands down,
winning, crowd
pleaser" when paired
with the Saffron
Alioli, although
many guests will
DEVOUR the
croquettas by
themselves. And, also exceedingly easy: You can make them ahead,
throw in the deep
fryer and serve as
passed hors
d'oeuvres with tooth
picks (and dipping
sauce).

I have to figure out
how to write this
review without using
lots of swear words.
Holy Jeebus was
that amazing. I
went with a couple
of suggestions: used
panko breadcrumbs
and used paprika
(smoked hot, in my
case) for the sauce.
I used a ricer
rather than mashing,
and while I can't
say if mashing would
have given the same
texture, the ricing
made for the
absolute perfect
texture to the
potatoes. They
were delicately soft
and delicious
inside, nice and
crunchy outside, and
for a first attempt
at deep frying
anything, I couldn't
have asked for
better. I used a
deep-fry thermometer
and a dutch oven, if
that helps anyone.
I will definitely
make again, though I
might up the chives
and lessen the
tarragon ever so
slightly.

There are many reasons why I love this recipe. The first is that it is fun to make. I thought it was a fun, and unique, experience rolling the potatoes in your hands to make balls. I can imagine this step being really fun with children; however, the rest of it would need heavy adult supervision. Secondly, they smelt delicious the entire time through and tasted great. I plan on making a simple mashed potato dish with all the herbs. The only problem is that the oil that you need is expensive and Im not sure if you absolutely need to have the more expensive oil to fry your potatoes, and there is a lot of left over oil. Furthermore it does take a while to make. I was making this for a potluck, and found that the steps took a lot of time to get through. What I suggest when you make it is, forget the dipping sauce, its good but it includes a lot of mayonnaise and the flavor of the potatoes are good enough. Furthermore, prepare your oil while you are waiting for them to chill in the fridge. I was in a hurry, put mine in the freezer, made the dipping sauce, then turned on the oil and it took a long time to heat up, so in the end the freezer didnt speed anything up, the oil just slowed me down. However, if I can confirm that I can use cheaper oil, or even reuse oil, I would make this several times a month. I thought they were delicious and there are so many possibilities you can do, such as stuffing them. They are fun appetizers and all my friends enjoyed them. I will definitely make these again!